VRBO CITRUS BOWL: AUBURN VS NORTHWESTERN

December 30, 2020

Blake Gallagher

Camping World Stadium

Northwestern Wildcats

Q. We just had Ramaud on before you. I asked him as an offensive player when he looks at your defense what stands out; what do you see in Ramaud that makes him such a talented wide receiver, that makes him so effective?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: Yeah, talk about a guy that just grinds. Super particular about technique. Super technical guy. Works his butt off. Is always around doing extras, working on stuff to get his game better and just a great leader on the offensive side of the ball, man. He's always bringing young guys along with him and coach them up and teaching them up. He can make all the contested catches. You know, win one-on-one. He's just a dog.

Q. The storyline a lot of times when SEC teams play Big Ten teams, it's physicality versus athleticism. How do you match up with a team like Auburn?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: I think we match up pretty well, man. We're excited for the opportunity to play an SEC team. We play against great competition in the Big Ten and we're really looking forward to the opportunity.

Q. What can you say for Coach Mike Hankwitz, the experience, the respect he commands, and his personality, and I don't want to disrespect the man in any way, but the almost father, grandfatherly type, just the whole package he brings. I don't mean to offend anybody by saying that, but he's just been around it so long. How does that impact you guys?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: Yeah, Coach Hank is the greatest ever to do it. He's the GOAT. Absolutely love playing for him and I know at 70, I sure as hell won't be coaching Big Ten football.

He's been great. He's been a guy that everybody wants to go out and just play as hard as they can for. Commands the respect, has the utmost respect from the guys and just an absolute mastermind when it comes to football.

Q. Being one of the veterans on this team, what's it like seeing a player just starting his career like Brandon Joseph, freshman safety, being First Team All-American, what is it like seeing him succeed in his first season and first season in the starting lineup?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: Yeah, it's unbelievable, for anybody to do that in their first year as a starter is great. We saw flashes of it from D-Jo as a freshman who really wasn't in a starting role in practice and then when he got his opportunity, he's made the most of it and has been an absolute dog all year. He's very deserving of it.

Q. Obviously you talked about wanting to send out Hank with a win. The three linebackers, you guys are all seniors, what would it mean whether you're coming back next year or not, but to send the three of you off with a win after you've been together for so long?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: Yeah, it would be great. The goal every week is to go 1-0 so this week, it's playing in a Bowl game, playing in a Bowl like the Citrus Bowl, the stakes are even higher. We're looking forward to going out and getting a win on Friday and sending Coach Hank out with win 400.

Q. You call him an "absolute mastermind." I'm wondering what you've learned from him defensively, and what do you see as the little things or his schemes that have made him so successful as a defensive coordinator?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: Yeah, I mean, just talk about a guy who is the doctor of fundamentals. It's something we work on every day. It's something that he really instills in us and that we work and we try to perfect great technique that way throughout the week. That way on game day we can go out and play fast and not even think about stuff like that.

Then as far as just like a defensive mind is just his ability to adjust and scheme offenses and just get different looks out there to confuse quarterbacks and different things like that, he's awesome.

Q. Is there any particular game or something that comes to mind about an adjustment you can recall?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: We got a lot of -- we got a lot of wild stuff in. So it's hard to pick out just one.

Q. Can I ask you about Pat Fitzgerald? He played your position. We saw him play here about 25 years ago. He's been able to create a culture at Northwestern, we don't get to see you that often, where you guys win year after year, at a demanding institution. This is your tenth Bowl. What do you see in how he's able to recruit men like you, continue the pipeline, and sustain? What makes him unique and your program unique and successful?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: Yeah, the first thing that stands out is winning breeds winning. You're successful, it's going to attract more guys who want to come, get a great education and play great football. He's done a great job of getting guys in here that want to do that and he's done a great job of developing guys and the staff has done a great job of developing guys to allow us to go out and win Big Ten Championships and compete and win every week.

Q. What has been the strategy since the Big 10 Championship game in focusing on strengthening up that run defense?

BLAKE GALLAGHER: Yeah, just correcting the stuff that kind of got us in the game. Obviously we go back, watch the game and make corrections during the week. Feel great about the plan. We have all this stuff fixed up and we just need to go out and execute. That's all it is. It wasn't anything crazy Ohio State was doing. It's just base fundamentals we have to execute, and that's what we're going to go out and do Friday.